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June 3 — Supporters of an Ohio drug pricing ballot initiative may be able to get the measure
before voters in November, thanks to a court ruling denying motions to block the effort
(
Ohio Mfrs. Ass'n. v. Ohioans for Drug Price Relief Act, Ohio, No. 2016-0313, motions denied
6/2/16
).

The Ohio Supreme Court June 2
rebuffed three procedural motions by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America
and other plaintiffs that would have extended litigation challenging the proposal
to the point that backers wouldn’t have sufficient time to collect the 92,000 additional
signatures needed to get it on the ballot.

According to Ohioans for Fair Drug Prices, the next round of signature collection
will begin June 5 and run through July 6.

If approved by voters, the act would amend Ohio law to require state programs to pay
the same, or less, for prescription medications as the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs. California voters will vote on a similar measure this fall (14 PLIR 815, 6/3/16).

Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which is sponsoring
the measure, said in a prepared statement that the ruling is “a sign that the Court
is not accepting PhRMA’s efforts to delay reaching a decision on the Ohio Drug Price
Relief Act.”

The AHF said the court still has to rule on whether Ohioans for Fair Drug Prices will
be granted an additional month beyond the July 6 signature-gathering deadline to compensate
for a month-long delay in forwarding the issue on to the Ohio General Assembly.

The coalition backing the Ohio initiative submitted petitions to Ohio Secretary of
State John Husted (R) in early January but, in an unprecedented move, he didn't forward
it on to the legislature until February, after returning signature petitions for second
review by all 88 county boards of election.

Ruling Not on Merits

PhRMA spokeswoman Priscilla VanderVeer told Bloomberg BNA that the court’s action
addresses procedural motions. “It was not a ruling on the merits of the legal action,”
she said June 3.

The court did not dismiss any of the substantive arguments still pending, VanderVeer
said, including circulator address problems and signature irregularities.

On Feb. 29, the Ohio Manufacturers’ Association, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce and
PhRMA filed suit with the state's high court, challenging the petition initiative
(14 PLIR 338, 3/4/16).

The lawsuit asks the Ohio Supreme Court for an order invalidating “part-petitions.”
It alleges that certain part-petitions were circulated by individuals who listed a
false permanent address; that part-petitions were altered by someone unauthorized
to do so; that the petition effort employed ineligible felon circulators; and that
over 1,400 part-petitions contain false circulator statements.

Jenny Camper, a spokeswoman for the three organizations, told Bloomberg BNA June 3,
“We don’t know yet if the drug purchasing proposal will garner enough valid signatures
to make the November 2016 ballot.

“What we do know is that tens of thousands of signatures were invalidated after a
review of the issue’s first-round submission. The Supreme Court has not ruled on the
merits of a pending legal action pointing to evidence of legal violations by paid
circulators.”

Camper said that in California more than 60 groups—including state and national veterans’
organizations, patient advocates, business and labor groups and the California Medical
Association—have expressed opposition to a drug pricing measure on that state's ballot.

A similar coalition will probably form in Ohio if the drug pricing measure makes it
onto the ballot, Camper said, adding, “The proposal is unworkable, offers zero implementation
guidance and would create a long-term quagmire of bureaucratic red tape and litigation.”

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